The High-Court Battle That Never Was

WASHINGTON -- The only step left in the Supreme Court nomination of Judge Samuel Alito looks to be the vote, raising the question of what happened to the much anticipated struggle over high-court nominees.

Foremost among a number of forces that drained some electricity from the fight was a bipartisan agreement among a group of 14 mostly centrist senators. That changed the dynamic of judicial debates, moving the Senate decisively away...